The U.S.J incident, surely a moment that shook the whole of Japan in a manner that very few incidents could match.
And why wouldn't it?
U.A is the top hero academy in all of Asia. A place that educated some of the greatest heroes the country, the continent and even the world itself, ever saw. And despite such status, a site under their jurisdiction was attacked and the children under their care were put in danger that they had yet to be prepared. Assaulted by a group proclaiming to be the 'League of Villains' the students were suddenly split all over the compound and forced to fend for themselves as the criminals attacked them. And while still not made public, a student had been targeted specifically by two of those villains. Foreigner villains that had been contacted to aid in the invasion of the school.
Thankfully the teachers present did what they could to protect the students, though one of them, the homeroom teacher, had been severely hurt in the battle while another student (the same student targeted by the villains) also found herself between the sword and a hard place. Although, before things could grow dire, the teacher responsible for the class of heroics, All Might, arrived and de-escalated the situation. Afterwards the class president Tenya Ida, with the aid of the student Valerie Vector Van Dyne, managed to escape the compound and contacted the rest of the faculty members, who soon arrived to deal with the immediate threat to the students. Though, the head of the invasion, alongside three of the more dangerous criminals did manage to escape, the remaining forces were apprehended.
As a result, one of the teachers suffered terrible injuries while thankfully the other ones were in a more manageable state in their health. Alongside two of the students, who also had to receive treatment for the injuries in their battle. Though one could have been in a more critical state despite her claims.
The students of class 1-A were forced to survive against something that even pros would have struggled with and stood their ground despite adversity. The school also took a heavy blow when it comes to their relationship with the public and the family of their students. At the moment, gaining their trust would prove to be a tall order to accomplish. Therefore, it is their duty to do better. To be better. And so they will, for the sake of their students and their future.
Both as the next generation of pro-heroes… as well as individuals made to confront life itself.
"Alright class, we're about to begin your exercise!" the mummy-looking homeroom teacher told to all of his students.
The entirety of class 1-A were all standing in front of the U.S.J compound, with most of them wearing their hero costumes and gear. They haven't set foot in said installation for around a week or so when they were attacked by the League of Villains. It was clear that some had a bit of a nervous feeling to be there once more. It was clear that even if it was a flash that lasted as long as a second, they did remember all that they had to go through. Though… It looked like there were a couple of students that weren't as nervous to be there as the others.
"Wow, would you look at that! Robbie was right, it doesn't look like this place was trashed by a bird-brain monster and a handyman with a rash and a goofy look." said Annie-May Parker, daughter of the Amazing Spider-Man after whistling when she saw the U.S.J compound not looking as damaged as it should.
"I-I really don't think y-you should joke about that Annie. Especially knowing h-how badly hurt you were." the blue girl of eyes as white as her hair, Valerie Vector Van Dyne, adopted child of the Wasp and best friend of the arachnid teen said.
"Hey, If there is one thing my family knows best, it is that some humor is good for bad situations every once in a while." Annie replied before turning to her teacher. "Say teach, you got this place up and running pretty quickly. What's your secret? Well, outside of loads of money to spare."
"This was just a minor stepback. Nothing more, nothing less. Though, I will admit that it was somewhat costful to restore the compound as quickly as we did." the teacher, Aizawa answered.
"I take it you guys didn't have bird-brain monsters in your insurance policy?" Annie playfully asked.
"We had many offers wanting to either help in either the reconstruction of the U.S.J or reduce cost for it from many places. But we ultimately declined them. We want to show that U.A is capable of picking itself up stronger than before."
"R-Really, you were offered outside help? From where?" asked the green-haired boy Izuku Midoriya, ninth bearer of One for All and inheritor of All Might's mantle as the Symbol of Peace.
"I really shouldn't say, but truth is I don't see why hiding it would affect matters. Some support companies that wanted to jump at the chance to promote themselves and hoped to have business with U.A. The hero commission actually offered manpower and even some foreigner companies."
"F-Foreigners?" asked Izuku.
"A handful of them approached U.A and offered to help out. For example Stark Industries and Alchemax Corporate." Aizawa said, making the duo of Americans flinch because they had an idea as to why those two specifically decided to offer their service. Valerie would then blush so much that she started to shine while Annie tried to disimulate while awkwardly looking the other way and whistling. "We also had offers from Roxxon Energy Corporation, but we didn't even bother with answering the phone. As if we would be dumb enough to even hearing that lot." the mummy-looking teacher said before he started to walk up to the inside of the compound.
"Hey Deku-kun, what do you think we'll be doing today?" asked the always cheerful Ochako Uraraka to her friend.
"It'll probably be some rescue exercise. We were going to have them before… well, you know." he replied.
"Yeah well, so long as another bulky turkey, a battery man and a crazy lady don't pop out of nowhere to beat me up, we're good to go!" Annie joked as she walked to their side. "I mean, by now I've probably been at the infirmary as much as you, right Izuku? Heh, I bet that by now we already have our own exclusive infirmary beds, eh? What do you say, Ochaco? Valerie?"
"I r-really would like it better if y-you didn't make those jokes. T-They scared me a little." the shy Valerie said as Ochako looked… a bit off.
"Um… y-yeah I… well, yeah…" she akwadly said and not in a manner natural to her.
The others also noticed that fact. Izuku in particular did seem a bit concerned. He knew her better than the other two girls, so it was clear that he felt a bit concerned. Unfortunately for them, they couldn't ask what was wrong, for their class rep Tenya Ida, who had his white armor on safe for his helmet, hurried everyone in class.
"Everyone, start heading inside in an appropriate and becoming manner of U.A students! We are to hold ourselves to the standards of this fine institute! Right, Aizawa-sensei?!" he asked his teacher.
"Too noisy." he said in a low tone before he and everyone else started to get inside.
Uraraka also headed for the inside of the facility, though seemingly looking like she was a bit in a hurry. Not like she was running, but it was subtle. Izuku followed soon, trying to reach his friend's pace. Thus, leaving the two foreigners by themselves, with one having her share of questions.
"Hey Val, is it just me, or has Ochaco been acting odd around me since last Friday?" Annie asked the blue girl
"I-I don't know, I haven't n-noticed."
"Mm, maybe it's my imagination. Tho, I guess I exaggerated with that joke, didn't I?"
"D-Does that mean y-you'll stop using them?" a hopeful Valerie asked as Annie kept quiet for a bit.
"... Hey, did you do something to your hair today, because it looks good on you." Annie said as Valerie sighed.
"It was too much to ask, wasn't it?" she thought as Ida called for them.
"Parker! We have a schedule to meet! Now, hurry up and stop distracting Vector!" he shouted as Annie groaned in annoyance.
"We heard you the first time, tincan! Geez, just because my ears were ringing for two days after being thrown through a bunch of walls doesn't mean I'm deaf!" Annie complained as she and Valerie entered the U.S.J.
Inside the compound looked exactly how it looked the first time they set foot on it. There were hardly, if any sign that the place had been attacked a little over a week ago. The only thing that looked… odd, is that there was a part in the stairs that looked like someone over cleaned the area and it now looked out of place. But other than that, the place looked as awe-inducing as the first time they visited. And front and center to welcome each and every one of the students, was none other than Thirteen herself! Being as cheerful as she was when she first saw them.
"Hello children! Welcome back to the U.S.J! I hope you've all had a wonderful time!" she told them.
"Hey there, Miss Thirteen! Looking good! New haircut?" Annie said in her always jokeful tone, though she did mean what she said.
"Why yes, thanks for noticing!" Thirteen replied, baffling the class.
"Hey, it's what I do!" Annie said, baffling them even more.
"How can you tell that she has a new haircut, she's wearing a costume that doesn't let you see her face?!" asked Denki.
"It's a girls thing. You wouldn't get it."
"I can speak for all girls in class that it's not a girls thing. It's just a… whatever you are, thing." Jiro said, with a decent number of the girls nodding, safe for some like Valerie for obvious reasons.
"Tsk, and here they say I'm the rude one." Annie murmured as Ochako approached the teacher.
"Thirteen-sensei, are you alright? You were attacked by that strong electric villain."
"Don't worry! He was obviously not at his full potential. And even then, my suit did manage to protect me well enough. Now, senpai over here is a very different story."
"If you all are done playing catch-up, class is already in session. Now, hurry up, we've already wasted enough time as it is." Aizawa said, as he turned around and started to head for the stairs to descend.
However, before he could get to the first step, Izuku asked a question.
"Um, Aizawa-sensei…" the green-haired kid said, making Aizawa stop and turn to face him. "It's just that, since we're supposed to have All Might for heroics this week. I was wondering where is he? Is he late or something?" he asked as Aizawa turned back again and started walking.
"Don't know, don't care. So just forget it and focus on what's important." the teacher said as he started to walk away.
Meanwhile the students were a bit confused at his answer. Izuku himself wondered if something had happened between the two of them. Even Valerie was a bit concerned about his whereabouts. So, to distract everyone from the heavy stuff, Annie made a joke that he was probably stuck in traffic. And what followed then, was the usual banter between the trio of Ida, Bakugo and Parker that the class was starting to get used to. One of them was complaining to the redhead abou why she should not make a mockery of their teachers. One complained and cursed at the idea of insulting All Might specifically. And the last one just called them annoying, which prompted more angry comments thrown at one another. Which just got messier when Izuku tried to calm the situation. Specifically by trying to calm his childhood friend a bit, which ended up in Katsuki threatening Izuku, Annie defending Izuku and Tenya cascading both Annie and Katsuki.
Thankfully for everyone's sake, the teachers told them to start heading to the mountain zone of the compound. They all did so, but unfortunately for them, they had to endure the trio of Annie, Tenya and Bakugo glaring at each other, while Izuku just felt more awkward than normal. Once they arrived at the specific part that the teachers wanted them to be on, they stared down a cliff to what would no doubt be a long fall if one of the students were to… well, to fall.
"Alright children, this will be the exercise." Thirteen said, starting to give her students some indications. "We'll do a simple rescue scenario. Nothing too fancy and very straight-forward."
"W-What exactly w-will we be doing?" Valerie asked.
"Simple, there will be three students down this chasm." she said, signaling to the chasm behind her. "One will be unconscious, the other one will have an injured leg and the other one will be physically ok, but will still be very worried. Understood?" she asked as both Kirishima and Kaminari looked down and saw the height of said chasm.
"Eh?!" the two of them exclaimed.
"How the heck are we supposed to get down there?!" asked Denki as Annie walked over.
"Come on, it's not that bad." she said.
"Easy for you to say! With all your flips and rope magic I'm sure that this is a piece of cake!" Denki comments.
"Ok first off, it's not rope magic. What even is rope magic?"
"And second of…?"
"... Hey, did you get a new shampoo? Because your hair looks good today." she said, distracting Denki, who took the complement.
"I did, thank you! Oh, it's so nice to have someone take notice of the little things!" Denki said with gratefulness.
"It's what I do." Annie said, though the reason she said that was mostly because… "The less people know of the mess that was my first web-swing, the better…"
"This is exciting! Right, Deku-kun?!" a hyped Uraraka asked the shy Midoriya.
"Y-Yeah, s-sure is!" he said while trying to look away so as to try and hide his blush.
"I-I'm kind of nervous. W-What if I mess up?" asked the also shy Valerie.
"Come on, guys. Lighten up! So, what if we mess up? We're here to learn, right?"
"Speak for yourself, you damn yankee! I came here to be on top, so you better expect for me to be the boss at the very first try and then some!" Bakugo yelled at the natural redhead, who groaned in annoyance.
"Too noisy." Annie said.
"I know." Aizawa driedly said.
As for Izuku and Valerie, they heard what their friend was saying. They were there to learn. To use their powers for the sake of aiding others in times of need. If they were to become heroes, then they needed to put in the effort and give it their all!
"Now then, our first volunteers will be… you three!" Thirteen said, while pointing at Izuku, Tenya and Ochaco.
"... eh?"
"Wow, is that Gang Orca?!"
"And Ingenium is there too! So awesome!"
"Those villains didn't stand a chance!"
"Hey, isn't that… you know, the spider foreigner that's been going around for a while now?"
"Oh, you mean… her?"
"Seriously, that costume is of bad taste."
Those and many more, were the comments that were being given by the civilians all around.
There was a villain attack in the city. Nothing too flashy, it was just enforcers of two local school gangs going at it with one another. Naturally, there were pros that were soon deployed to the scene. Among those pros, the tenth ranking of Japan, Grand Orca and the big time Ingenium of Idaten. The two of them, plus another pro from nearby, stopped the group of rebel teenagers without that much effort. Which… unfortunately for Mayday, meant that she once more had to play the role of the little sibling in the whole deal. In other words, she was just told to hang around the corner and not to cause a ruckus. At least this time around, she managed to catch three of the gang members that managed to slip past the other pro that helped Ingenium and Gang Orca. But that still didn't make her mood any better.
And while she was standing in the sidelines, Gang Orca took notice of it and asked Ingenium and the other pro to handle the press while he took care of something. The other pro didn't quite get it, but Ingenium did. And truth be told, he would have rather switched places with Orca than to deal with the press, but unfortunately that could not be the case, because the press then came to view. By the time they started to ask questions, Orca had already arrived to stand next to the older Parker sister.
"... Stone Master's left side… god, what is it with hero names on this side of the globe…?" Mayday said, asking a question to herself before continuing with her original statement. "His left side is the one that's the most vulnerable. Not by much, it's really pretty subtle. But that's how that lot managed to get past him. I'm sure that if I hadn't been nearby, he may have had a hard time trying to catch them in time."
"That's a good observation. Those are the qualities that any proper pro must aspire to obtain. Great work." Gang Orca said, somewhat congratulating in fact. However just one look at her face -mask or no mask- was enough to tell him that she was not taking it, which made Orca sighed. "Fine, what is it?"
"Oh, so you mean I'm allowed to talk now? Would it be ok for me to do something like that?"
"You may be a foreigner to this country, but a passive aggressive tone is not."
"Well, excuse me if I decide to feel a little condescendant for a bit. I mean, that tends to happen when someone feels just a tad bit irritated and frustrated." Mayday said with a clear annoyed tone. "It's been months. I get it, I knew from the start that this wouldn't be easy, I do. I understand that, but this is just getting ridiculous."
"In what way, do you think this is getting ridiculous?" asked Orca as Mayday chuckled.
"In what way? It would be easier for me to tell you in what ways it hasn't. But fine, let's see… I've been a pretty obedient gal since getting here. I haven't stepped out of line, I follow every procedure that I'm told even if they're just laughable, but does that matter? No, apparently not!" the American said, her voice rising a bit before she tried to calm herself. "For every step I think I take, it feels like they want to push me back to the start. I could have tried to ignore all this nonsense, but I decided to follow the rules out of respect. I'm doing this because I wanted to help, not because I wanted to be treated as a child. I am an adult."
"Even still-"
"I. Am. An adult. I already had to go through this nonsense with my dad nearly half a decade ago, so as to just suddenly have someone ignore all of that and spit on my efforts and the efforts of everyone that helped me be who I am today. I'm not some naive kid and even if I was, I'm not dumb enough that I need someone holding my hand to catch a simple purse natcher anymore."
There was a small silence between the two. Nothing that filled the air other than the sound of the media further away from them and the echoes of Mayday's words. After a handful of seconds, Orca started to walk away, all while signaling to Mayday to accompany him. She did and soon, they were farther away from the crowd almost at the entrance of an alley. Once there, where no one could drop on them unannounced, did Orca speak once more.
"Remember the reason that you said as to why I was assigned to oversee your progress?"
"What? I didn't-"
"You did. Even before I entered the room, you gave the reason loud and clear for all to understand." Orca suddenly said, as he started to explain what he meant. "You fought your own iteration of dangerous villains that took their inspiration out of madmen that almost set the world on fire. You fought a god and whether you won or not, gave a chance for others to follow soon and come victorious… You have fought side by side with the likes of Captain America, the Avengers, your father and many other great heroes whose feats are beyond most understanding. Truth is, you're an opportunity for the Hero Association and Japan as a whole."
"Ok Orca, you complain that people think you look like one of the bad guys. No need to go the extra mile by being super creepy on top of it."
"What I'm trying to say is that you are a valuable asset as you are. You have experience that most pros don't have. Information about scenarios that would be of most value to the country and its citizens. Means to contact larger than life begins and the ability for them to listen to you. Just last week, you provided the police and U.A with intel of dangerous villains unheard of to us. If we had tried to obtain information from them through normal means, it would have taken far too long to be efficient. And from what I heard, that fact pushed the higher ups to listen to a request to ask for foreigner aid in the case. Everything that you offer is something the government would be grateful for having."
"Ok, as creepy as that is, then why am I still-"
"Because you're still a former vigilante, child of the greatest vigilante of the world." Orca interrupted. "You have experienced how the people of Japan view that. Our culture and society makes it so that we don't exactly like it to allow vigilantes to operate on the magnitude that you and your peers do. If the Hero Association were to simply give you a hero license that easily or even normally, that could cause a reaction across society that would not be pleasant. 'If she ge0ts to do that, then why can't I?', that's what the civilians might say. If not carefully, something as simple as receiving a license might get people to ignore the law and take it upon themselves to play hero. Without proper education, or training or even an idea of what the hardships that come with the job are."
"Well… wasn't that how my dad and some of us started?"
"What works in one place may not work in another.
"And what if the reason it doesn't work, it's because the people don't want to make it work? What if what they think that has worked well for so long doesn't actually benefit them and they just keep it like that out of pride?"
"I know it's not always perfect, believe me… I've experienced the cruelty and faults of society… but just because something is faulty, does not mean that it's ok to ignore it and tear it down without thinking. If one wishes to make change, then it has to be with thought put into it. With the consequence in mind. Because if not, if one acts without thinking things through, then their actions will lead to chaos."
"I get it dammit I do. It's just… so frustrating."
"I understand and I see the appeal. It is true that if we do things your way, we may get ourselves our own Spider-Man, our own Luke Cage, our own Avengers. But it's also true that we run the risk of having our own Frank Castle, our own Sin Eater… our own Stamford."
That last statement left Mayday quiet. She was aware of the weight and meaning of the statement. Even if she wasn't that old to remember most of it, she knew of what had occurred. She was a member of the current iteration of the New Warriors. She knew what that name meant to the world as a whole. And… she could not argue with it.
"I'm sorry, I really mean it." Orca said, walking away and leaving Mayday alone with her thoughts.
By now, the trio of Uraraka, Midoriya and Ida were down the chasm for the exercise. Midoriya was the one playing the role of the injured one, Ida the one of the worried one and Uraraka the one of the unconscious one. Though, it was hard for her to do so with Ida overacting his role as per usual. As for the rest of class, they stood on the sidelines while the ones in charge of rescuing the trio were the quartet of Momo, Bakugo, Todoroki and Tokoyami. Obviously, anyone with the slightest knowledge of who Bakugo was would immediately jump to the conclusion that he would be quite reckless in his approach. And considering that his first suggestion was to blow up the chasm to make it easy, it was safe to say that said conclusion was correct. Then again, seeing that he was asked to rescue Midoriya probably also had something to do with it.
Naturally, Annie didn't waste time to make a jab at Bakugo and to her surprise (a little bit), she was far from the only one. And to make matters worse, Todoroki decided to take charge of the situation. Not that his approach was bad, far from it, but his cooperation skills with Bakugo were lacking at best, considering that it felt like they were about to start a fight. However, to the gratitude of everyone else, Momo had the decency to call them out on their behavior and act like a proper hero in training would. Which was a pretty nice moment and one that made everyone gain more respect towards their vice-rep that they had already… So of course, it had to be ruined by Mineta being Mineta.
So to follow in Momo's example, Annie pulled him from his cape upwards and when his eyes met hers, she told him to behave, else she would have Bakugo rescue him. Statement that made Mineta shake in fear at Bakugo and for the ash-blonde to yell at her that he already has enough with saving one worthless extra so as to have to deal with another one.
Once things finally calmed down, Tokoyami descended to the chasm so as to bring Uraraka up as they had discussed. And while they showed some concern about how hard it would be for one person to do that, he reassured them that it was ok, for he was worth two. Activating Dark Shadow to help him in the task.
"Dark Shadow, bring Uraraka upwards." Tokoyami said, but Dark Shadow…
"Shut up, I don't wanna."
"Just take her upwards."
"... Fine, if that's all I have to do, right?" Dark Shadow said, going to where Uraraka was laying down and placing her on the stretcher. Then, he started to lift her towards the edge of the cliff above them.
"Carefully, don't let her be harmed." Tokoyami said.
"I know, stop being so bossy." Dark Shadow complained as he reached the upper part of the chasm where the rest of their teammates started to pull them up.
Once there, they all heard how Uraraka was doing her best to contain her laughter because in her words, Ida was being so serious it was funny. Though, Momo didn't share that view. She commented how that was a wonderful trait and not a laughing matter. And Uraraka agreed… right before laughing some more.
"Alright, let's pull the next one up." Todoroki said, getting down on his knee and fixing the rope to pull the next one.
"Tsk, just shut up and do it already" Bakugo complained as he did the same.
"Alright, I'm going to admit it. That seems a bit harder than I first thought. Especially if your quirk isn't compatible." Mashirao said, noticing that the exercise was a bit more challenging than they expected. "I guess you might have an easier time, seeing how useful your powers would be in this situation, right Vector?" he told the blue girl, who looked a bit down.
"I-I can only close a d-distance of just t-twenty meters. With that kind of l-limit, I might be u-useless in this scenario." Valerie said with a disappointed tone.
"Hey, don't go saying that. Look, we won't always have the luxury of using just our powers. So learning to be useful without them might be a good thing. I mean, there are already people that do this without them, so we shouldn't complain." the American red-head said, making everyone look at her weirdly. "What?"
"We tend to forget that you're actually kind of smart, Parker-chan." Tsuyu said as some of the other students nodded.
"What the- you know what? Forget it." Annie said, with a bit of an annoyed tone.
"Quite the excellent observation, Parker. Saving people without using one's quirk can be a taxing job. However, those are the kind of heroes that shine the most!" Thirteen said as Sero pointed something up.
"And yet, he's the only one pulling up."
"Shut it, you bastard!" Bakugo yelled back.
"However, that's not entirely a bad thing." Thirteen said, confusing some of the students. "He realized that he could not use his quirk in this scenario and that's a good thing. Not many pros are capable of doing that. They always think of themselves and when encountering a situation that they find challenging, they put it aside. It's just as Parker said, learning to do so without your quirks will benefit you greatly. And the moment you manage to understand and remember that, you will succeed." she said, as she looked at Bakugo. "I'm sure you all will become beautiful heroes!"
"Nah, he'll never be beautiful." Sero joked, with quite the smug expression on his face.
"I'll kill that bastard!"
"What a shame, Katsuki. My heart aches knowing you'll be stuck looking like that." Annie followed soon, equally as smug-looking as Sero who chuckled at her comment.
"And I'll kill that damn yankee too!"
"Alright, let's hurry the pace, we don't have all day." said Aizawa, as the next group followed.
Like expected, some did show to struggle with the job. Not many had the luxury of having an adept quirk for the task at hand and even the ones that did, showed to have a hard time either way. It made their time as the ones being rescued a little more appreciated. It helped them ease their worries and mentally prepare for when their chance came. And then, there were those few that didn't show to be as worried, like for example…
"Oh, the agony! The pain!" Annie said in a dramatic flair, deciding to have some fun with the exercise. "I see a light at the end of the tunnel! Uncle Ben, is that you calling for me?"
"Whaaa! Please don't go to the light!" Valerie cried, standing next to Annie who was lying on the ground and grabbing a hold of her hand.
"... You do know that I'm not actually hurt, right?" Annie asked.
"Oh… y-yes?"
"You two sure are something." Mashirao said, laying also on the ground since he was supposed to play the role of the unconscious one.
Meanwhile at the top of the chasm, stood the trio of Jiro, Kaminari and Mina. All witnessing what was happening down the chasm and all with blank expressions on their faces.
"... That girl is somehow top of the class… I don't know how I should feel about it." said Jiro as the other two nodded in agreement.
And Annie's playful attitude did not stop there. For by the time it was her turn to save someone, she did so in her usual jokeful self. One of the ones playing the role of the one in distress in her scenario was none other than Shouji Mezo, the tallest guy of the class. He was the last one of his group, since he played the role of the worried one. Now, one would assume that Annie would pull him up with her webbing, or in any other manner. And yet, the way she decided to do the rescuing was… different to say the least.
"Thank you for choosing Spider-Rescue services! We would greatly appreciate it if you were to recommend us to friends and family alike!" Annie said, after giving one final leap off the chasm and landing gracefully at a safe distance from the edge of it… all while carrying Mezo bridal style.
Yeah, it was safe to say that the sight of a 1.65 m girl carrying a 1.87 boy like that was… interesting to say the least.
"D-Did you have to carry me like this?" he asked with a blush of embarrassment visible even through his mask.
"I mean, it did the job, didn't it?"
"Can you at least put me down now? This is very emasculating."
"Hey now, there's nothing wrong with being rescued by a pretty face, I'm sure that there are a bunch of lovely ladies that would do it for you." Annie said, trying to complement the boy, but she also decided to have some more fun, if the grin on her face was any indication. "You know, there is always the chance that there's something wrong and I didn't notice. Maybe I should carry you just a bit more to make sure you're ok."
"Parker, put him down."
"Oh fine." Annie said, gently lowering Shoji so that he could stand on his own.
"Looks like we weren't included because we may not have been as efficient on the job. At least you got to do something." Sato said as Shoji approached the group of himself, Koda and Aoyama, since they weren't part of the exercise.
"And now, I wish I had remained excluded." Shoji complained a bit as Aoyama also complained of how unfair it was.
"It's ok, you'll get your chance next time. This was just to have you children get an idea of what to expect." Thirteen said as she addressed the entire class. "You all did good for the first try. We have a couple more scenarios prepared, so there's still lots to do."
"But that doesn't mean you should relax. Remember, this is class, not a playground. Act accordingly, am I clear?" said Aizawa, while oh so subtly turning his gaze at Annie.
"Mm? What, why is he looking at me?" she asked as the rest of the class just stared at her.
Afterwards, the teachers guided the students to another area of the U.S.J. That being, the ruins zone. They took them to the middle of one of the fake streets of the destroyed fake city and while most did look at the place with some awe, at least three didn't share the excitement due to them having been sent there during the attack. And one of them…
"Wow, this place sure hasn't changed that much." Annie said while then pointing at one of the buildings. "Hey look, that's the wall I was sent through!"
"Parker, take this seriously." Aizawa said.
"You're right, it was that wall." she replied while pointing at another building.
"I mean it."
"Ok fine, I was just trying to lighten the mood."
"Well don't." he replied as he and Thirteen then decided to address the rest of the class.
"Alright, this scenario will be a little different. I think you'll get a more genuine experience from this one." Thirteen said.
"H-How different will it be?" asked Valerie.
"Unlike the last scenario, you won't know where the injured will be, nor will you know their state. You will all have 8 minutes to spread out and just 4 of you will remain here to be the rescuers. The rest will be able to hide wherever you wish. Out of those that get to hide, 8 will not be able to speak. Those I will personally select, alright?"
"Oh, so this will be like playing hide and seek?!" Mina asked with excitement.
"Well, more or less I guess." Thirteen replied as the pink girl celebrated.
"Alright!"
"Heh, it'll be like when we all used to be kids, right?" Annie asked.
"I-I never played h-hide and seek before…I'm a little nervous about it…" Valerei said before Annie wrapped her arm around her shoulders.
"Hey, don't worry, you'll be ok, you have me here. And I'll have you know, I was the undisputed hide and seek champion when I was little. The other kids never managed to find me whenever we played." Annie said, with pride.
"Yeah right, they probably never even bothered because of how annoying you were." Bakugo said, making Annie's eye twitch a bit.
"Now then, the four that will be the rescuers will be… you four!" Thirteen said, pointing at Mineta, Midoriya, Uraraka and Bakugo.
"What?! Why do I have to do it with useless Deku?!" Bakugo yelled out.
"T-That doesn't sound nice" Valerie said while Mineta… was being Mineta.
"If I get to rescue all the girls, then that means I can touch them all I want and it won't be a bad thing, right?" he said, literally looking like a starving animal looking at a meal when eying the girls of his class and while Annie herself looked at him with a blank expression.
"Permission to switch places with Minoru and have Katsuki look for him." she said while raising her hand as the two boys complained in objection.
"Hey!"
"Denied, now you four go away, the rest stay here." Aizawa said as they did what he said.
Once they did, Thirteen selected the others who were meant to remain silent and once she did, told them to go find a place to hide. Everyone scattered and as expected, the duo of Americans made off of Annie and Valerie went together. Since they were allowed to hide anywhere they liked, Annie had the perfect place to stay. She thought that it may have been a bit unfair, seeing how she was more familiar with the zone than anyone in class, but hey, it's not her fault that a deranged lady convinced an evil cloud guy to take her there to try and kill her.
The two ended up going to a room in one of the higher floors of a building near the center. She knew of it since Joey had sent her crashing near it a couple of times and Annie considered going there to catch her breath during her fight. Of course that never happened and she instead went for another place when she did manage to sneak off after her shoulder popped back into place. That place was also good, but she recalled being near where the seekers were waiting while the exercise started. So it would be very risky to go there. Once the two reached their destination, the two decided to sit down and just hang out until either they were found out, or the exercise ended. Whatever came first (which according to Annie, it would most likely be the latter one because she was that good at playing).
"W-We're a bit high, don't you think?" asked Valerie.
"Meh, a little bit. It's not that bad, but I do think it'll be hard for most of the others to reach us that easily. So we pretty much have this in the bag." Annie reassured her best friend. "You know, it's kind of odd that they went out of their way to organize this excersise for us. You know, seeing how they went as far as to change our schedule the way they did."
"I-It is a bit odd. D-Do you think it has to do with the Sports Festival?"
"Maybe? I don't know, I still don't get the whole Sports Festival thing." Anie said, before Valerie saw her expression changed from a normal one to a… bossy one? One of acknowledgement? She didn't know how to describe it, but there was a small frown on her face. "Toru, put on your globes, don't cheat."
Valerie found her comment a bit odd, not understanding what she meant. And suddenly, she heard a small groan coming from her left.
"Aww, and here I thought this was going to work."
"EEEP!" Valerie screamed in fear, hurrying behind Annie and when she sneaked a bit to get a peak of what was happening, she saw a pair of globes floating in the air. "Eh…? H-Hagakure?" she asked, surprised to know that their invisible classmate was with them.
"Hi, it's me, yeah." the invisible girl said.
"Eh?" questioned Valerie.
"So you were the one following us." Annie said, much to her surprise.
"Eh?!" questioned Valerie even more. "Y-You knew?!"
"A little, I guess. I mean, she didn't make it that hard actually."
"B-But she's invisible!"
"And she still didn't make it that hard. Seriously, Toru. You weren't part of the 8 that miss Thirteen chose to keep quiet. You really shouldn't make it that harder for the rest. I mean, I know this is an exercise, but the level of difficulty should still be reasonable. It's not like you see basic science teachers go out of their way to tell a 2nd grader to know what Lenz's Law is all about, do you?" Annie said, much to the confusion of the two girls. "Um, you know, Lenz's Law? The one that states how the current induced in… Oh come on! Pick up a book once in a while! It's not that hard!" Annie complained, thinking that at times, she was the only person around that actually learns anything at or off school.
"Still, how can you even tell I was nearby?" asked Toru.
"I'm more than just a pretty face. I do have a couple of tricks off my sleeve, you know?" Annie replied.
"Yeah… probably that and all the vigilante spider stuff…" Toru said quietly, yet for one with hearing as sharp as Annie's, it was clear enough. The girl frowned but decided to ignore her comment.
"Tsk, whatever…" Annie said, crossing her arms. "Hey anyway, what's with your costume?"
"Huh?"
"I mean, I guess a pair of globes is an iconic look and all, but why is it that you need to take them off? Couldn't you make them out of the same material as the rest of the suit?"
"Rest of the suit? What do you mean?" Toru asked.
"You know, the one… you're wearing… right now…" Annie was saying until she realized something.
She has never been in the changing room with the other girls. She has only been there with Valerie due to how shy she is. And with that in mind, she has never seen anyone else change into their hero costumes safe for Valerie… wait no, it couldn't be… could it? Annie was questioning the answer and the more she thought of it, the more her face looked shocked and with a small blush.
"Oh my god… and here I thought that Mineta was the obvious pervert." Annie said.
Suddenly, the ground started to shake. As if a small tremble had hit the ground. The building shook a bit for a few seconds and it was safe to say that it spooked the other girls that weren't Annie. Valerie simply clenched onto Annie more than she already was and Toru had the most fear-filled expression she has ever had since the U.S.J incident… well, it would be easier to tell that if her face was visible.
"W-W-What was that?!" a scared Valerie asked.
"Well, remembering some of the people searching for us, I say maybe Izuku broke one of his fingers and/or Katsuki blew one of his fuses." Annie said as the building shook for a bit a second time. "Ok, maybe two." she said as the building shook once more. "Or four I guess." and once more the building started to shake. "Ok, we get it! We're going out!" she said as she and the other two took their leave as the building kept on shaking.
Upon leaving the building, they started to look around to see what was going on. The whole place suddenly shaking like that was not something normal. Valerie could still be seen with an on-edge expression on her face. Not sure what was happening and making sure to not leave Annie's side, who was the more composed out of the three (Again, ignoring the fact that Hagakure's face was not visible). Despite what was happening, Valerie saw that Annie's determination did not waver and was as professional as one who truly knew her would expect. Which was proven more so when she insisted on going to where it seemed all the commotion was coming from.
When they arrived, they saw three of their classmates all on the ground as a massive curtain of dust blocked the view behind them. Those four were Uraraka, Jiro and Ida himself, who looked like he had been the one to push them to the ground while shielding them from whatever danger was coming. She didn't have to be a genius like her friend to know that the first thing they should do is to go to their side to make sure they were ok. Which was exactly what the redhead of the group did,rushing where the trio was as they were picking themselves up.
"Hey guys! What's going on?" she asked the three as Valerie followed her with Toru coming not that long after.
"I-Is this part of the exercise?" asked the blue girl with Hagakure begging for the same.
"No! It was a villain!" said Tenya as the dust started to dissipate.
Once it did, they saw a large, muscular and bulky man walking towards them in a menacing manner. He was wearing a pair of green militar-like green pants, a black tight shirt with green shoulder pieces that were adorned with three large spikes each. A pair of fingerless gloves and what looked like a modified gas mask that was colored balck on one half, orange on the other one, had orange lenses and another handful of spikes coming out of it. Six that were accommodated to the sides, while two came from the top in a manner that resembled horns. That by itself would be enough to scare most students, but what had their blood running cold was the fact that he was carrying someone as if he were a simple bag.
"I-I-Is that… is that Todoroki?!" Valerie asked with fear as the others also noticed.
"No way… did that villain seriously defeat the class' strongest?!" asked Kyoka… all the while Annie looked extremely offended by that comment.
"Wow, I'm standing right here… Not saying that I'm not willing to put it to debate, but still." Annie said.
"Would you for once take things seriously?! This is not the time for you to make jokes!" Kyoka yelled at Annie… who looked even more offended and not for the reasons one would expect.
"Man… It's like you don't know me at all."
"You two, focus! What matters at the moment is to reach the teachers and inform them of the situation!" said Tenya as more and more of their classmates started to appear.
"A villain!" Izuku shouted as he and Mineta soon arrived.
"No way!"
"Dammit!" Momo said as she, alongside Denki, Ejiro, Fumikage and Hanta also arrived.
Thankfully for the students, the teachers were just at the corner of the street, also having arrived due to all the commotion. So with the chance given to them, both Valerie and Ojiro ran towards them.
"Sensei!" Ojiro screamed as he and the blue girl arrived at their side. "A villain just suddenly showed up out of nowhere!"
"Well that's bad. I'm injured and Thirteen's quirk is not suited for direct combat.
"W-What do we do?!" Valerie asked.
"Hurry! You all have to go to the exit while you still can!" the other teacher said as she pointed to where the exit was, but unfortunately, the villain had other plans.
"I can't have you do that! None of you get to escape from here!" the villain shouted as he raised his right leg and stomped the ground with so much power, that it was as if a massive explosion suddenly burst in the middle of the complex.
The might of the blow was so great that it pushed all the students, all the debris, even the buildings themselves, all away. When the dust settled and all the students had recovered from the attack, they saw a circle clear of any obstructions that was tens of meters in diameter. And all, because of the villain's one attack.
"So s-strong!" Denki said with shock.
"How did a guy like that managed to hide here?!" asked Kirishima as Valerie whimpered.
"T-That… what are we going to do?" she asked as the villain stood there, menacingly.
"Now then…" the villains suddenly spoke. "With the terrain cleared out, I'll make sure none of you escape from here!"
"Oh no, this is bad!" Thirteen said as she reached the area. "Everyone! Run away!" she pleaded, but suddenly someone jumped into the frail.
That someone was none other than the ash-blonde of the class, who used his explosions to propel himself towards the villain and once he was close to him, he unleashed an attack on the invader. The blast did nothing to the criminal,as if it were nothing but a simple breeze. Bakugo then got out of reach before he could get a hold of him and then started to prepare to attack once more.
"B-Bakugo, wait!" Valerie suddenly shouted. "H-He's too strong, we have to get out of here!"
"If you want to run away, then run away!" Bakugo replied while aiming his gaze to the villain with a smile plastered on his face. "I'm going to stay here and beat this bastard right here and now!"
"You are a gutsy child for deciding something like that at moments like this!" the villain replied.
Bakugo once more jumped at the chance to attack. He repeated the process over and over again. Yet, over and over again it looked as if it were for naught. No matter how many times he tried. Most would call him a moron for doing so. Valerie looked at the events unfolding however, with confusion.
"He… he's too strong for him. Too strong for any of us. Why does he keep doing that? We should be running away, none of us could beat him one on one! Our powers won't be enough!" she thought as the villain decided that enough was enough and went in for a charge against the student.
"This has lasted far too long!" shouted the villain as he was about to charge with his left arm.
However, just as he was about to do that, just as he was about to go on the offensive against Bakugo. A blue blur came out of nowhere. Said blue blur found an opening on his left side and said blue blur managed to bypass it and grab a hold of the unconscious student, getting him out of harm's way. That blue blur was…
"Hey you duffus! Superhero 101, save the people first, then beat the bad guy!"
Anna-May Parker.
The girl quickly landed with Todoroki in arms and then placed him next to Ida and Hagakure, who were nearby.
"What the hell is your problem, you damn yankee?! Can't you see that this bastard is mine?!" Bakugo yelled but Annie just grinned.
"Why, I just thought that since I have more experience fighting big baddies like this, I could give you a few pointers."
"As if I need any help, especially from you, you damn yankee!"
"Both of you, stop this at once! We have to get out of here!" Tenya tried to order, but Bakugo just scuffed.
"If you're going to do something, then don't just stand there like an idiot!" Bakugo told him. "Get the rest of the weaklings out of here then, if you want to worry about the others!"
"Well, you're just a master of words, aren't you Katsuki?" Annie said sarcastically, while looking at Tenya. "But he's kind of right. You're the class rep, get the others out of here. Don't worry, I'll make sure nothing bad happens to any of you." she said with a smile, while Tenya just grinded his teeth.
"You two just don't get it do you?"
"Hey you two, who says we need defending!" Kirishima's voice suddenly made himself present as he approached the battle area alongside everyone else that had yet to do so. "We're more than capable of fending for ourselves! Right guys?" Kirishima said with determination, as the rest of class A stood with him. All equally determined and ready to join the battle.
"We're all the 22 students of class 1-A of U.A!"
"And we'll all be heroes one day!" Uraraka said, standing by Yaoyurozu's side with the rest of the students.
"E-Even them?" Valerie asked herself, as the villain chuckled.
"Mmh, how brave of yours… and how futile as well! RAGH!" the villain exclaimed, raising his fists into the air and creating a mighty air current that charged at the students alongside large pieces of debris flying towards them.
The students however managed to get out of the way, with either Kirishimma or Sato destroying them with their bare hands, or Aoyama blasting them away with his naval laser. Afterwards all the students did their part in attacking the villain. And as they did that, as they persisted despite being severely outmatched, Valerie remained watchful.
"What is wrong with me? Why did I decide to go against my dream?" Valerei thought, berating herself for her previous actions. "It's not about being the strongest. It's not about powers. That's not what real heroes are."
"That is enough!" the villain shouted, moving both arms in a way that it created another wave of air that pushed all away. "I'll admit, I didn't expect that all of you would attack me at once. But something as simple as-" he was unable to finish as some webbing was shot at his face as Annie jumped in and landed a kick.
"Sorry, were you saying something?" she asked before jumping away as Bakugo charged once more and blasted at the villain again.
"Dammit you damn yankee! What did I say about not needing your help!" he yelled as he blasted at the villain a couple of extra times before getting out of reach.
"Why you!" the villain said, prepared to strike at the ground. However instead of striking at the ground he hit… his own abdomen? "W-What?" he asked himself in confusion.
For the one responsible was none other than Valerie herself, who created a portal that she placed beneath him and then sent back to his own stomach.
"Real heroes… are the ones that overcome adversity!" she thought before helping out some more.
"Nice one, Val!"
"Great, another one of you annoying foreigners getting in the way. Well, at least you're not as annoying as the damn yankee."
And as the trio did what they could, Midoriya saw an opportunity to come up with something.
"Everyone, Mineta-kun, Vector-san, Ida-san, all of you!" he said, getting everyone's attention. "I have an idea."
At the same time, the other two students keeping the villain at bay jumped away once more.
"What is that? One of you getting tired already? Well, it's just a matter of time before the two of you finally fall."
"If anyone's getting tired here it's the damn yankee! I'm just warming up!"
"Says you, I was already getting sleepy with how easy this is."
"That attitude of yours won't do you any-" he was saying, trying to walk and feeling that something was making it hard to do. "What?!" he asked as he saw his legs had been wrapped together by something that looked like a tongue together and then, he felt someone touching his shoulder and before he knew it, he was already floating a few meters in the air. "What is this?!"
But before he could even question what was happening even further, a magenta light appeared in front of him and from it, a mighty stream of pressurized air hit the villain point blank with incredible might. Unable to properly protect himself, the villain was sent flying backwards and into a magenta portal that sent him crashing into a pile of rubble filled with multiple of Mineta's sticky hair balls that immobilized the villain. Turns out, Midoriya had planned that all along, if his suddenly broken finger was any indication.
"Yes, it worked!" he shouted as he and the rest of his friends celebrated.
Using Valerie's teleporting abilities, the group devised a plan that involved first stopping the villain from moving for at least one second. Afterwards, Uraraka would touch the villain's shoulder thanks to her portals once more and Izuku would use one once more to hit the villain with all the power he could muster now that he would be confused and unable to properly move. Once he did that, Valerie would use the last one to create one behind him that, when he crossed, would teleport him right into a bunch of debris that the other students made and covered with Mineta's sticking balls in order to immobilize him.
As it turns out, it did the job… though not everyone was happy about him.
"DAMMIT, YOU USELESS DEKU! WHAT'S YOUR DEAL MESSING WITH MY FIGHT!" he yelled, making Midoriya yelp in fear at the ash-blonde.
"S-sorry, Kachan!"
"Hey, we stopped him, so stop barking and be grateful for once."
"THE SAME GOES FOR YOU! YOU DAMNED YANKEE!"
"Whatever." she said as she started to walk towards the villain.
"Y-Your plan worked, Midoriya!" Valerie said, complementing the boy who blushed a bit… and when she noticed that, she blushed as well as she turned around to avoid eye contact with Midoriya. "I-It w-w-w-was a r-r-really good plan." she said, too nervous to functionally speak.
"T-Thanks, Vector-san… but…" he also said in a similar fashion, but managed to control himself as he looked at the two teens that did the fighting. "It wouldn't have worked if not for them." he said as Valerie looked at Annie and Katsuki. Mostly at Annie, who made her smile as she was now standing next to the villain.
"Alright gang, let's see who the villain really is." she said as her hand started to approach the villain's mask, much to his dismay as he frantically tried to stop it to no avail.
"Wait, wait, wait, no! I-" he was saying before Annie pulled his mask and revealing… "I am here!"
"... ALL MIGHT!" the rest of the students said as Annie smiled.
"AH-HA! Just as I suspected, it was the teacher all along!"
"SUSPECTED?!" they shouted once more as All Might laughed.
"HAHAHAHA! Apologize children! I wanted to surprise you all with a villain appearing before you!" he said as both Thirteena and Aizawa sighed at what they were seeing. "I know that the other day happened, but you all did such a great job that I wanted to see how far you've come! You did excellent! I expected nothing less from… the hero… course…" he was saying.
Unfortunately, by then most of the students had already arrived at the scene and well… they didn't look pleased to say the least.
"... Um… I'm sorry?"
"You went overboard! You idiot!" they all shouted as Annie couldn't help but laugh.
"It happened just as you said, Senpai."
"It can't be helped." Aizawa said as he remembered how this all started, just a couple of days prior in the afternoon, once classes were over.
"A surprise?" Aizawa asked All Might, who was in his normal form.
"Yes."
"I'm opposed. They've already suffered one villain attack not too long ago."
"Yes, but they believe that it was just an accident. Pure coincidence that won't happen again. But we both know that's not the case. Us heroes face dangers like that on a daily basis. I want them to understand that." All Might argue.
"It's counterproductive and just cruel. We may traumatize them if all goes south."
"True, but they must learn about the determination to overcome our fears…" he said, suddenly activating his quirk and looking as buff as he always was. "And that's where we come in! For are we not their teachers?"
"I feel like you're right, but that you're also not telling me something."
"Do you believe that I would allow harm to come to our students?"
"No, not for a second… fine. But you will assume full responsibility for this."
"HAHAHA! Of course I will! But don't worry! I trust their strength!"
"Still, it was quite the surprise that they even managed to stand up in any form." Thirteen said as Aizawa agreed, all the while they were seeing how their students were tearing All Might a new one.
And he wasn't the only one the students had a problem with.
"AND WHAT THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE?! WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU SUSPECTED THAT IT WAS HIM ALL ALONG?!" Bakugo yelled at Annie, while being backed by some other classmates.
The girl just kept laughing, irritating her peers, but she decided to answer their question.
"Well, it really wasn't that hard." she said while still chuckling. "For starters, the school just upgraded their security and while that doesn't make it impossible for this to happen again, it should still be pretty hard for just one person when last time it took dozens of people and even then still struggling."
"That doesn't explain how you knew that we weren't in any real danger!" Kyoka said as Annie chuckled some more.
"Oh yeah, I'm getting there. The other reason why I knew something was up was the fact that All Might wasn't around and that mister Aizawa just dismissed it so casually. That's when things started to be a little fishy. And then, when the 'villain' attacked, I noticed that he didn't seem as aggressive as any that we've met before and that he didn't seem to be that serious when fighting us. Oh but what really made everything just so suspicious, was the fact that; A) my phone still has signal..." she said, showing her fossil of a phone that indeed had signal and making the others check theirs and seeing that she's right. "And B) the fact that our teachers didn't show to be that worried about our safety. Even if we were to take into account the fact that one of them was injured and the other one didn't have a quirk suited for direct conflict."
"What do you mean 'not worried about our safety'?!'Thirteen-sensei was screaming for us to get out!" shouted Sato.
"Yeah, but there was something odd about her tone of voice. B'sides, mister Aizawa didn't show any sign of concern about us. And I had a front row experience at just how concerned our favorite mummy hobo-teach behaves when we're in actual danger."
"Parker, I want you to know that the only reason you're not having detention after class with me is because you have the only functional brain in your class." Aizawa said as Annie snickered.
"But the biggest sell-out was him." she said while pointing at…
"TODOROKI?!" they all shouted seeing the half-ice, half-fire quirked kid standing up as if nothing had happened to him.
"YOU ICY-HOT BASTARD! YOU WERE PART OF THIS STUPID JOKE THIS WHOLE TIME?!" Bakugo asked, as the other boy kinda nodded.
"In a way, yes." he said, remembering what had transpired with him.
He was by himself, thinking about the path that has led him to today. Silence and the only thing keeping him company were his memories. Then, he remembered a voice, he turned to face the intruder that had sneaked on him. But just when he was about to fight, the stranger stopped him. He removed his mask and showed that he was none other than his teacher. And then, said the teacher gently and with care, asked for his help.
"But how did you know it was all an act?" Todoroki asked the redhead girl.
"Oh, very easy actually. Barely an inconvenience!" Anni said, reading herself to explain the hows and whys. "You stiffened your body at times and at other times, you looked like you were trying to be seen as loose or something like that. In your defense, you could obviously trick most people that don't have acting knowledge. Though I was a theater girl before, so I can tell the difference. Even if I wasn't, I could have never shown my face to my mom if I couldn't tell a novice act at first glance."
"I see."
"Then why didn't you say anything!?" Denki asked.
"Hey, take this as payback for all the comments and for letting me look like an idiot during the quirk assessment test of our first day here." Annie said, while looking at Momo. "But seriously gal, I thought for sure that you knew."
"I… The thought never crossed my mind… Now that I think about it, it was a very obvious deception… how did I not notice it?!" Momo said, looking like she was about to have a mental crisis.
Meanwhile, All Might was still dealing with his own set of problems.
"Midoriya-kun harmed his finger! Do you not realize how bad the school would look to the country if word were to get out?!" Tenya pointed out at his teacher.
"Don't do that again!" Uraraka said, turning around alongside Tenya to meet Midoriya's gaze. "Right, Deku-kun?" she asked, only to see him sitting down.
But before they could grow worried about him, he just smiled and looked completely relieved about the situation.
"Thank goodness. It was all a surprise all along!" he gladly said, calming the anger of both Tenya and Ochaco.
"Young Midoriya!" All might said with joy, summoning their rage once more.
"Don't you 'Young Midoriya' us right now! Don't do that again!" Sero said as Uraraka offered to get Midoriya to the infirmary.
And while those two were still dealing with that, Valerie looked from the sidelines. It was all an act and she bought it. She thought for sure that they were in danger once more, but as it turns out that wasn't the case. And what's worse, they were in no danger and still she doubted. She silently belittled herself for not noticing before she heard her teachers approaching her.
"Is everything alright, Van Dyne?" Aizawa asked, making sure to say her last name as low as possible, but spooking Valerie a bit for using it. She has been so used to being called 'V' and 'Vector' by those outside her circle of friends that she was surprised to hear it.
"I… am not sure. It was all fake and I never noticed it…"
"You weren't supposed to notice it. But that doesn't take from what you did and learned, so don't diminish your efforts." Thirteen said as Aizawa nodded.
"I know but… I guess that I thought I should have seen it… I was so scared…" she said while looking at her best friend still defending herself from the others and smiling a bit. "No wonder she was so fearless. She knew all along and… she really is that good, huh?"
"Mm, is that so?" asked Aizawa.
Valerie didn't quite get the question. So she instinctively looked at where Aizawa's gaze was set (or where she thought they were anyway) and saw that they were on Annie. She was still chuckling as Kyoka and Toru specifically were screaming at her. But then… she noticed something. While she was holding her hands up in defense, she was still holding the mask that All Might was wearing. And as she did, despite her arms supposedly not moving, she…
"She was shaking the whole time?" Valerie said as her teachers nodded.
"We're not perfect Van Dyne. The world may expect that from us and much more, but truth is, we're still humans. And we don't start as perfect either. We work, we train, we laugh, we cry and we make mistakes on the way to be who we are today and even then, we never stop learning. Believe me when I say this, you lot will grow to be prime heroes. Of that, we'll make sure as your teachers." the mummy-looking teacher said.
"I… I guess you're right…"
"Remember that the U.A Sports Festival is in one week. Use the remaining time that you have to grow and show us all of the potential in you." he said as the two then walked away.
After which, Annie managed to free herself and went straight to her best friend.
"Hey Val, do you think that I can convince All Might to let me keep this mask? It's kind of neat! Just give it a new coat of paint, maybe add a spider here, a skull over there and done! Do you think that I would look good with it?" she asked, only to be met with Valerie looking down and with her expression unseen. For the first time since they arrived at the U.S.J, Annie stopped her jokeful nature and showed a remorseful expression that showed concern and seriousness. "Look Valerie, I'm sorry. I know I should have said something sooner and… the only thing that I did was just being a dumb kid even when you didn't like what I was saying. And especially when it was clear how uncomfortable it made you, I… if you want me to stop them, I will. Just say it and-"
"No it's ok, I'm fine. I… I was just thinking, that's all." Valerei said, raising her head and showing a caring and gentle smile. "Annie, let's give it our all at the Sports Festival." she said, making the redhead smile as well.
"Well, that's to be expected!" Annie said, wrapping her arm around her friend. "After all, we're U.A's number one duo!"
And so after classes ended, everyone went home. But with what Valerie had said… well.
"What are you guys doing here?" Shinso asked, as he saw all of his friends in front of his house after opening the door.
"We have one week to get you into shape! So we came here to pick you up! We're all going to Val's house and you were the only one missing." Annie said.
"I… I'm not sure, guys. I don't think that-"
"Shinso, you look like a stick with insomnia. If you want to get into the hero course, you're going to have more of a condition." Robbie interrupted as Kamala hit him with her elbow.
"What Skully MacFire wants to say here, is that this is the kind of thing that you need to put in the effort. So, we're all here to help you with it!" Kamala said, rubbing her elbow because dammit Robbie is a tough sonuvagun even without transforming. "Come on, Annie even agreed to have Hatsume help her with her web shooter project just so that we could get her out of the lab." the Pakistani girl revealed, shocking the Japanese boy.
"Wait, really?!"
"Just a little bit. Nothing involving the formula. But I also agreed to help her with some stuff."
"Plus, by observing you all training, I can analyze the best way to increase the efficiency of training the body and then develop babies designed to do just that!" the pink-haired girl said.
"J-Jarvis even volunteered to help us by making an appropriate training regiment. I t-think that would help you greatly."
"I mean… what about you guys? Because it feels like I'm the only one getting anything."
"Hey, we're friends. That's all that matters. Besides, we could use the workout a bit. Especially Robbie, he has an awful condition. He barely lasts five minutes in a fight." Annie quipped, making Robbie's eye twitch.
"Look who's talking. I recall you struggling to walk after our fight."
"Just please say yes. We already had to hear them arguing about who would win in a fight three times and even I'm getting tired of it… And I wrote a 'vs' fanfic when I was five that had better arguments than the ones that they give." Kamala pleated as both Annie and Robbie frowned a bit.
Normally, Shinso would probably not do it. He would just say that he didn't need it… But they came all the way for him. Because they wanted to help him and that… that was all that mattered to him. Which is why he chuckled. If they really believed in them that much, then he wouldn't want to let them down.
"Ok, I guess you guys win. Just let me pack some stuff and tell my parents." he said, as they all nodded and saw him getting ready.
Time until U.A Sports Festival: One week.
"You've been very quiet lately. Any reason for that?" Orca asked Spider-Girl.
"No, I was just thinking that's all."
"Anything in particular?" Ingenium asked.
"Just stuff, nothing groundbreaking I guess." she replied as Orca looked at her.
Just then, they all managed to hear cries for help from around the corner and if the car on fire being tossed around was any indication, then they were probably needed.
"Well, today's just full of surprises." Ingenium said as he and the others started to prepare.
"I'll form the perimeter." Spider-Girl said, much to Ingenium's surprise and the curiosity of Grand Orca. "You guys be careful, I'll make sure that-"
"I'll form the perimeter." Orca suddenly interrupted, surprising the two of them. "You two go and keep the citizens safe from whatever threat did that. Understood?"
"Are you sure?" Spider-Girl asked, a little shocked at his answer.
"I believe I made myself clear."
"... Understood!" she said, a bit of excitement in her voice.
"Hope you're not too rusty. Wouldn't want to hog all the attention." Ingenium dared, making Spider-Girl grin behind her mask.
"Oh, it's on, Ingy!" she said as the two raced to action, all as Orca looked over them.
"You are not a naive child, nor are you an adult…" Orca was saying to himself as he turned around to form the perimeter. "You… are a hero."
My Hero Academia: Legacy Bits! - The Return of the Super-Moms!
"Hey mom, where do you want these ones?" Annie said, picking a box that had multiple shirts with them.
"Oh, they go next to the jackets that have a 30% discount. The ones near the edge of the men's section." MJ told her daughter.
Since it was a Saturday in the morning and Annie being Annie was already up to date with all her homeworks, she offered to help her mom at the store for the day. MJ, seeing nothing wrong with it, decided to allow her to do so. And so, here they were, early in the day and organizing the store before they opened it. And Annie would be lying if she wasn't also eyeing a handful of pieces that picked her interest.
"Ok, got it." she said, pulling the shirt and placing it on top of her. "Hey, this one's nice. What do you think?"
"I think that one is a boy's shirt, Annie."
"Hey, not my fault it looks good on me. And look who's talking, you kept using dad's jackets and shirts for so long that he had to put them on lock… and you still kept using them. How did you do it anyway?"
"Hey, if your auntie Felicia liked to get her mittens where no one asked her to, the least she could do was teach me how to pick a lock." MJ told her, actually glad that Black Cat was that kind of ex to her husband. "Besides, Inko's coming with her kid. And I would prefer it if you acted a bit more normal for me. Wouldn't want you to scare the kid."
"Oh yeah… mister 'great personality' is coming here… ugh." Annie said, shivering at the thought. "And also what's that supposed to mean? Name one time that I- you know what, nevermind, I'm just digging myself into a hole." Annie said as her mom snickered.
Meanwhile on the streets not that far from there, were a somewhat chubby woman of green hair with a box in hand, walking by with her son.
"I hope Watson-san likes these sweets. She mentioned never having them, so I thought that making some to enjoy while we help her at her store would be nice."
"Don't worry mom, I'm sure she'll appreciate them. No one makes desserts and sweets as good as you!" Izuku said, making her mother smile.
"Oh that's so nice of you to say, son! Oh, I hope that you and Watson-san's kid managed to get along."
"It's ok, mom. I'll do what I can. I think I've become a bit more sociable now!"
"I'm so glad to hear that, son." she said with a smile as she then stopped upon arriving at her destination. "Oh, look, we're already here." Inko said as the two entered.
And once they did, someone went to greet them.
"Hi, welcome to MJ's! I'm sorry we haven't opened yet, but if you'll like-" Annie was saying, but froze when she saw a familiar green-haired face in front of her.
And likewise, Izuku froze when he saw that familiar red mane in front of him.
"Oh, you must be Watson-san's daughter! Oh you look so much like her!" Inko said as she then heard her friend's voice.
"Annie, did someone- Oh Inko, it's you!" MJ said, smiling upon seeing her friend and her son. "Oh my god, is that your kid? He's your spitting image, you two look so adorable!"
"Watson-san, remember those sweets that you mentioned? I made some, I thought that we could have some while we help you today."
"Oh, you shouldn't have, now I feel bad for not bringing anything for you."
"No need, you've done more than you think."
And while the two mothers were catching up, Annie and Izuku kept on looking at each other with their jaws almost hitting the floor.
"Did you do something to your hair?" Inko asked MJ.
"Oh, it's nothing. Just something that my aunt taught me when I was a kid." the older redhead replied.
"It looks so good, you'll have to teach it to me."
"Oh stop it, you're making me blush." MJ said in a playful manner before seeing her daughter. "I see that you've already met my girl."
"Yeah, she looks so much like you!"
"Yeah she's my middle child, my little Anna-May. But what about your son? You two are so alike, if I didn't know any better, I might have thought that the two of you were actually twins."
"Watson-san you say the wildest things." Inko said, receiving the complement that MJ was giving her. "Yeah, this is my son, Izuku. Izuku, why don't you introduce yourself?"
"Annie, don't you have something to say to this handsome young man?"
And with those words from the two mothers, did their children finally react.
"EH?!" the two exclaimed in shock, pointing at each other and confusing their mothers.
"Izuku?! You're mister personality?!"
"Parker-san you… but she… I thought your name was Parker!"
"My name is Parker!"
"But then why does your mom-"
"Watson is her maiden name!"
"Wait, really?! Then why-"
"Watson-Parker! As in, Watson of Parker, come on man, it's not that hard! And can't you at least call me Annie here?!"
"Uh? You two already know each other?" MJ asked the two children.
"Y-Yeah, we're friends from the same class." Izuku answered before turning to Inko. "Mom, this is- MOM?!" he exclaimed when he saw his mother's face being red as a tomato, teary eyes and with her hands covering her mouth.
"D-D-Did she just call you by your first name?! And she just insisted on you calling her by her first name?! Izuku, when did you start to have these kinds of relationships?!" she asked as her son blushed so bright that scientists would confuse him with a star if they were to be near him.
"N-N-N-N-NO! I-I-IT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE! I MEAN, I CAN SEE WHY YOU WOULD THINK THAT AND SHE DID GAVE ME HER PHONE NUMBER, BUT IT'S REALLY NOT WHAT YOU THINK!" he rapidly said, confusing Annie, who didn't get why they were acting like that.
Meanwhile, MJ knew immediately what was happening and understood both sides. And so, a mischievous grin was drawn in her face, because she decided to have some fun.
"Aw, look at that! My little casanova!" Mary Jane said in english, placing her hand on her daughter's shoulder, who then turned to meet her grinning face. "Tell me, where's the honey moon going to be?"
"MOM, WHAT THE HECK?!" Annie shouted, also burning white hot like Izuku.
After a long, tedious, and embarrassing explanation from the two of them, it was safe to say that both children felt really awkward… which became worse for Annie because she ended up having a call from her father because he, in his own words, 'felt something'.
Well, there's the chapter. Bet you guys weren't expecting for me to use the first OVA, did you? Actually, how many people use the OVA? I know they like to use the first movie, but not the OVAS. Or at least I haven't seen anyone use them in the crossover section (which is like almost the only one that I follow).
Now, this one will be quick, but to ShadowNinja77, well, one of your questions was kind of answered here. Reminder, the continuity here is basically almost the same as the regular Marvel 616 comics, with a handful of differences that might be revealed in the future with both Legacies and Marvels of the word and even some others. One example, Peter's love life was the same as canon up till Civil War, since here there was no Mephisto, seeing how the two have three little rascals under their roof. There is one added character to his love life from back in the day, that much I did say once.
As for your other question, I think I also had some explanation in a previous chapter but I don't mind explaining it again. Basically, If any of you have an idea for a chapter in either the Legacies or Marvels anthology series that I have, you can PM them to me and I can write them down. It can be just the idea, an outline or even the whole story if you have it and you will be credited for it. Maybe there could be a moment for a specific part of the story where I could ask for help to write, but that's further down the line. Though, an idea that did come to mind was that if any want to make your own Legacies Bits little story, you can and I can see where to put it (though I think we could talk by PM to make sure everything is in order). There's also the fact that people could also send me OC's for this universe and I can write them down as well and also credit them. Again, it could be just the OC or the story itself. I made my own to try and give you all an example if you feel like it. And if it can somehow fit in the main story, then he/she/it/helicopter will make a cameo or full appearance in the main story.
This is mainly to also help people get started on writing or just give exposure to already existing writers. You can check the other times I've addressed this question for more information (which where last chapter and I think the notes from chapter 21). And for a more direct approach to anyone's questions, you can PM me and I won't have any issue. I will communicate with you no problem.
Anyway, it's getting late, so I'll leave it a bit short for now. Before I forget anything, I might as well wish you all a Happy Father's day! Whether one of you is a father, is seen as a father, or are about to celebrate your father.
Anyway, have a good time and stay safe. Bye